aspherical.txt

Commentary on photography posted to Aspherical, a popular metro Atlanta photoblog.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

bad neighborhoods @castleberry hill & vine city (polaroid 1200si)

One day, while strolling through my neighborhood, I came across this low budget car wash. When I went back in the evening to photograph the car wash in the evening, the proprietor - at least I assumed he was - was sitting in front of it. I went back a few more times and was finally rewarded with a people free flick.

Although the car wash looks like it could be anywhere in the rural southeastern United States, it is located only a few miles from downtown Atlanta. As far as I know, the car wash is still there and still in business.

Homelessness is a serious issue in Atlanta. It is a problem, because they irritate me by asking for money all the time. However, there were two agreeable (i.e. they never talked to me) fellows engaged in urban camping in my neighborhood. Most of the time, they simply sat in a field with their limited posessions. After several tries, I was able to take this flick of a bums' nest, minus the residentially challenged persons.

While out strolling on another day, I discovered this Atlanta Falcons fan's recreational vehicle, located in a vacant lot on the eastern edge of Vine City. For readers unfamiliar with Atlanta, Vine City is a serious slum, mostly famous for its open air drug market. I went early in the morning to get the photograph, while all the crackheads were still asleep. Even then, I did not dare venture inside. By the time I found someone willing to explore the interior with me, the RV was gone.

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

more ideas from the professor @oakland cemetery (fujica ax-5)

Oakland Cemetery is one of my favorite places to shoot flicks, mostly because several visitors have expressed they are not wild about cemetery photographs.

A few years ago, during a conversation with my friend The Professor, he mentioned riding through Oakland Cemetery as a child and wondering about the monuments reflecting the Downtown Atlanta skyline, which is visible from the graveyard. As this was an excellent idea, I set off to implement it.

Monday, July 21, 2008

echo lounge @east atlanta (fujica ax-5)

In the days of way back, soon after I first moved to Atlanta, I was introduced to the Echo Lounge by a co-worker. One day while The Man was keeping us down, she mentioned her band, now defunct, would be playing that Friday at the Echo Lounge. I think that was the first show I saw in Atlanta and was certainly the first of many 3d5spd shows I attended.

While Sharks and Minnows, the opening band, were playing, I spotted an athletic long haired brunette in a simple dress with a tattoo on her back - how racy - smoking a cigarette at a table by herself. I walked over and chatted with her. Later on in the evening, when I requested her phone number, she simply replied, "No." I wish every woman was that succinct.

Highlights I remember from the Echo Lounge include discovering Sunday Munich and their unbelievable singer Sarah when Spy canceled the night their guitarist's first child was born, a Nightporters reunion show put on by Stomp and Stammer, and Methane Studios' annual poster sales.

My co-worker has long since moved away, most of the bands I saw there have fallen into the dustbin of unwritten history, and the Echo Lounge itself is in a state of disrepair. Rumor has it a new music hall and an Irish Pub are opening in the building, or may be open already - East Atlanta is no longer my stomping grounds, but rumors have swirled for several years, so I will believe it when I see it.

Most of the time, the decay is just there - a somewhat abstract commentary on the state of the country during the King George the Fourth era. In contrast, the slow disintegration of the Echo Lounge is personal and reminds me of a time in my life that I miss.

Monday, July 07, 2008

vehicles @cabbagetown (fujica ax-5)

Cabbagetown is an Atlanta neighborhood that fell on hard times when the nearby cotton mill closed, but has been revitalizing recently. Fortunately, the yuppies have not completely taken over and there are still some interesting things to photograph. One of the first things I found was this excellent shadow on the side of a Volkswagen Microbus.

Towards the end of the trip, I came across a scooter sitting on the sidewalk. As I was photographing it, some hipster sitting on the steps kept glancing up from his book and looking at me funny. I ignored him. Eventually, he asked me what I was doing. I responded and handed him a card with a web address on it. I think it was his scooter, but he never said it was.

The dark spots in the lower left hand corner are due to a shutter malfunction in the ancient Fujica AX-5. Sometimes it ruins photographs, but is generally avoidable by keeping the shutter speed at 1/250th of a second or below. With the two pictures of the scooter, I think it works with the compostition. Thoughts?